L’Oreal Colour Riche Monos Eyeshadow Review & Swatches
L’Oreal Colour Riche Monos Eyeshadow or L’Oreal Les Monos by Colour Riche Eyeshadow are launching at drugstores now with the L’Oreal Spring 2016 Collection. I haven’t gotten the name down quite right yet as I keep hearing them called Monos Eyeshadows in the UK but the displays here in the US they refer them as Les Monos. Let’s just call them L’Oreal Single Eyeshadow shades and call it a day, sound good?
L’Oreal Colour Riche Monos Eyeshadow are available in 14 shade selections with both matte and shimmer finishes for $5.99 each and should be popping up at your local drugstores right about now. L’Oreal’s no stranger to the single eyeshadow world as they have a very successful selection of Infallible Eyeshadows that everyone knows and loves plus they have done many single shades in the past however, with the Les Monos Eyeshadows they venture into a new formula and texture.
L’Oreal Colour Riche Monos Eyeshadow comes housed in tiny black compacts with clear windows that display the shade of each shadow. They weight in at 0.12 oz and should store quite easily due to the smaller size of the compact. Dare I say they are kinda cute to look at?
According to L’Oreal these are first eyeshadow with an “infused gel technology” which provides intense pigment in a soft, velvety texture. I think velvety could be misleading as these are not velvety in the least. To best describe I’d have to say the remind me most of Urban Decay Moondust Eyeshadow or Bobbi Brown Sparkle Eyeshadow but with a bit of a softer texture. They do have a gel-like consistency with a loosely packed texture that has a slightly creamy feel. They tend to flake up when you press into them with a brush or sponge and they do have a bit of fall out during application. If you use an eyeshadow brush I think you’ll find they have more fall out or you might experience issues picking up color. I’d recommend a sponge eyeshadow application to pick up and apply color to lids and blend with your regular shadow brush.
I find the formulas kinda vary in terms of application. Some were soft and applied easily but darker shades that I tried seemed to have a bit of patchiness when applying. For example both Violet Beaute and Teal Couture both had a fair bit of patchiness during application. Pigmentation was great on all the shades with very smooth, even color when swatched. But sadly smooth, even color swatches aren’t what I’m looking for! I want that on my lids, not my arm! I will say the other three shades I tried which were Pain Au Chocolat, Sunset Seine, and Paris Beach applied very smooth and even.
I’m actually on the fence about this formula. It’s a considerable improvement upon shadow formulas we see currently at the drugstore that’s for sure. It’s sure as heck a lot nicer than the eyeshadows I’ve seen in the Maybelline the Rock Nudes Palette. However, it’s also an inconsistent formula that seems to vary from shade to shade and also has some minor potentially irritating application issues with fall out, patchiness, and a less than easy to apply formula with a regular eyeshadow brush.
I’ll just say I liked L’Oreal Colour Riche Monos Eyeshadow but I didn’t love it. As drugstore eyeshadow continues to evolve this formula is a step in the right direction but still needs a few quirks to be perfect.
L’Oreal Colour Riche Monos Eyeshadow are launching now at drugstores or get them at Ulta.com and drugstore.com.
Tried ’em?
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